After I tidied up my emotions, I immediately went to the attic of the courtyard house. Upon opening the door and seeing my parents' memorial tablets again, I discovered that my grandfather's was missing. That old man...
I didn't know what to say about him at that moment, but now was not the time to dwell on other things. I had to search for what he had left me.
I searched around the memorial tablets and found a gray package beneath a table. I carefully moved it out and opened it to find a white jade bottle inscribed with the character "Song." There was also a note in my grandfather's handwriting: "This is from your master, Mr. Song, for you. It's a coroner's embalming bottle. The white jade powder inside can reveal all traces on a corpse without the need for a detection umbrella or seaweed ash. However, it can only be used once, so be cautious. Remember, remember!"
I picked up the white jade bottle. This was my last life-saving treasure. This time, as soon as I saw the corpse, I would have the confidence to clear my name!
I couldn't stay in the courtyard house any longer, as I heard the sound of dense footsteps. Officer Yang was truly fast, noticing this place so quickly. As I left the courtyard house, I almost crept past through the nearby bushes.
I estimated that those people would go looking for my grandfather, but my grandfather was so clever that he likely wouldn't be troubled. I stood in a back alley, looking back at the aged appearance of the courtyard house and then at the myriad lights of Fuming City, before cautiously departing.
I drove all the way back to Guangming City. I now had to find a way to get Xie Chuchu to bring the body to me!
Although doing so was risky and difficult, I believed Xie Chuchu had a way.
Taking advantage of the early morning, I arrived near a building that sold computers. Using the public computer terminals, I began to type. It wasn't like WeChat or QQ; I left a message for a fan named "I envy your senior" in a novel I had written.
This person was actually Xie Chuchu. After I left the message, she quickly replied with a crying emoji, followed by a string of text: "I knew you would contact me here. Only this place is safe, right?"
"Yes, I need to get Ma Biao's body. Do you have a way?"
"You still want to examine the body? Actually, I've already verified that body."
"I'm not doubting your professional skills, but I need to re-examine the body from a coroner's perspective."
"I understand. I'll find a way. I'll help you get the body out. Don't worry!"
"How much time will that take?"
"It's not certain yet. I'll find a way to notify you when it's done."
Seeing this message, I noticed police officers nearby. Captain Yang was indeed fast. I quickly entered the program to delete the chat history. He Xin had taught me this; without her, I would have been finished this time. After clearing the chat history, I immediately slipped away. I had actually just brushed past several police officers. Those people went straight to question the staff at the sales counter.
I overheard them saying they would take the hard drives of these computers to retrieve information. Those guys, they thought of that too. Officer Yang wasn't simple. I didn't really know this person. Although I was the director, I was usually very busy, and my focus was on the Punishment Group. Therefore, many people thought I was just acting director, and the real power in the department lay with Director Ma.
Fortunately, I left quickly, or I would have been completely finished. After coming out, I looked around. Since I had already mentioned getting Xie Chuchu to steal the body, I didn't need to contact her for now. I had to find a place to hide and wait for her good news.
Fortunately, my hiding skills were decent, but facing the increasing number of police, my pressure grew. Even when I went to cold alleys filled with beggars, I could sometimes see them passing by in twos and threes. What was going on? Was Captain Yang mobilizing the entire provincial police force to hunt me down?
Just now, on a street wall, I saw my own wanted poster. That familiar photo was of myself. Witnessing this in person in this situation, I didn't know whether to describe it as ironic, desperate, or helpless.
"Isn't that Detective He? Am I seeing things? He's wanted city-wide? What a joke!"
"This doesn't seem fake. I heard he killed Director Ma's son. It's terrifying. Has this person solved too many cases, and his inner self has become twisted!"
"I don't believe he's that kind of person. Someone must have framed him!"
"I think so too, but if it's baseless, how could they issue a wanted poster? Alas, it seems Detective He is in trouble this time."
I stood among the crowd, listening to their various speculations, and quietly left. I had seen several police officers lingering nearby earlier. If I had been a moment slower, I would have been discovered by now.
Thus, I returned to the cold alley. A beggar, who had been staying here for some time, noticed my return: "You, why are you always sneaking off? Tell me, you're so young, and you've become a beggar? That's impossible! Are you one of those streamers, here to do streaming?"
"No, it's because of certain matters... alas, it's not something that can be explained in a few words! However, after some time, I will leave here and return to a normal life!"
"Hah, let me tell you, people here used to include gangsters, all sorts of big bosses, but in the end, they all succumbed to reality and gave up. Put away your naive struggles, they're meaningless. Becoming a beggar is becoming a beggar. Do you think there's still a chance to change?"
"This..." I naturally didn't want to say more. Seeing my determined look, the beggar shook his head and sighed. He took out a pack of dry biscuits from his pocket and offered it to me, then started gnawing on a bag of potato chips himself. Although I was hesitant to eat the biscuits, I was very hungry at the time and had no choice but to force myself to eat a few bites.
Watching the beggars here sleep soundly, I didn't know what was going on. These people had fallen to this state; they must have had many stories in their past. And I, today, was no different...
I didn't eat much, just made do. The beggar saw that I looked a bit distressed and comforted me: "Don't be sad, you'll get used to it soon. Let me tell you, the uncle next to us used to be the general manager of Kanghua Beverage in Fuming City. Later, the company was found to have illegal products, and then things went downhill. The company collapsed, his wife left, and he owed a pile of debt that he probably couldn't repay in a lifetime. Then he declared bankruptcy and came here. A few days ago, he was still talking about starting over, making a comeback, and so on. Now he's finally given up, hahaha!!"